Floating hangar for airplanes.



M. C. SCHWEINERT.

FLOATING HANGAR FOR AI RPLANES.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 4, 10m.

1,292,097. Patented Jan. 21, 1919 Fig. 1.

MAXIMILIAN CHARLES SCHWEINER'I', OF WEST HOIBOKEN, NEW JERSEY.

FLOATING HANGAR FOR AIRPLAIN'ES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 21, 1919.

Application filed February 4. 1918. Serial No. 215,270.

To all cvhom it may concern:

Be 11: known that I, MAXIMILIAN C.

SCHWEINERT, a citizen of the United States of America, residing in West Hoboken, in

the county of Hudson and State of New- Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Floating Hangars for Airplanes, of which the following is a specification.

My invention has to do with floating airplane hangars, by which is meant a vessel designed for transporting air planes and for permitting their launching and returning, and it has for its primary purpose to provide mechanism particularly adaptable for hydro airplanes. A more specific purpose of the improvement is to provide a landingstage, which makes it possible for the hydro air plane to readily return to the hangar from the surface of the water, and also for if};1 to easily take the water when leaving the s 1 4 A further object of the invention is to provide practical mechanism that permits safe and speedy launching and landing of an air plane under varying conditions.

Still another purpose of the improvement is to afford a structure which adequately protects the plane while on the hangar and to utilize the same parts for both functions, by having a landing-stage which serves as a housing or shed when positioned upon the ship and out of operation.

To these and other ends the invention consists in certain other improvements and details of parts, all as will be more fully pointed out hereinafter and referred to in the claims at the end of the specification.

In the accompanying drawings;-

Figure 1 is a transverse sectional view ofv a ship equipped with one embodiment of my invention, and i Fig. 2 is a side elevation.

In the operation of air planes, and particularly hydro air planes, it is a rather difiicult matter to successfully launch a plane from a hangar, or for a plane to effect a landing operation upon a hangar, owing to the comparatively restricted runway or free space which the ordinary hangar affords for a launching or landing operation. An additional difiiculty has been experienced in finding adequate and practical means for housing and protecting an airplane while in the hangar. My invention s intended to do away with these objections, and I accomplish this, generally speaking, by employing a landing-stage that is movably-supported upon the hangar. The landing-stage, of which I preferably employ one at each side of the hangar, is formed of two or more relatively movable sections which, when swung .downwardly toward the water, provide a gradually inclined chute or way of suflicient lengthto permit an air plane to ascend or descend it under the usual operating conditions. When the landing-stage is swung upwardly, it extends over a portion of the hangar and constitutes a protective shed or housing for an air plane housing located under it.

In the illustrative embodiment which I have disclosed, A designates the hull of a hangar or ship, and B the usual deck portion, while C designates a supporting platform which is preferably horizontal and arranged between the bow and stern of the ship, being somewhat lower than the deck portion. The supporting-platform G extends from one side of the ship to the other, as shown in Fig. 1, whereby an air plane, X, can be launched or landed from either side of the vessel. A landing-stageis provided at each end of the supporting-platform C, and as both of these are the same in all respects, I will, for the sake of convenience, refer in detail to only one.

Each landing-stage comprises a primary section D which is pivotally supported upon the ship at the point E, and is adapted to swing either to the vertical position illus trated to the right of Fig. 1, or to the downwardly a'nd outwardly inclined position shown at the left of Fig. 1. Pivotally connected to the section D is a secondary sec-- tion F which is so connected as to permit the sections to fold in one direction when they are swun upwardly over the ship, and to prevent t eir relative movement in the opposite direction beyond the position shown, when the landing-stage is down. This may beaccomplished by a suitable guard member G attached to the section E and arranged in the path of the pivotal section F. This arrangement causes the sections to be maintained in alinement with each other when swung downwardly, and the sections are so proportioned and arrangedthat when in the water upon which the ship is resting, while the gradual inclination and length of the stage is such as to permit an air plane to readily make the necessary ascent or descent between the body of water and the supporting-platform of the ship.

\Vhen the landing-stage is not in operating position, the primary section D extends vertically, forming the side wall of a housing, while the secondary sect-ion F extends horizontallyover the ship and toward its central portion, forming a top portion of the housing which incloses the supporting-platform C and an air plane thereon. By utilizing two landing-stages, one at each end of the supporting-platform C, it is possible to construct them so that each one, when out of operating position, will extend'inwardly substantially to the central part of the ship and cooperate with each other to provide a complete shed or housing over the platform.

It will be understood that the invention may be otherwise carried out than in the particular manner which I have described and yet accomplish the result to be attained from a movably-supported stage comprising a plurality of relatively movable sections which can be adjusted to positions above the ship, where they constitute an air plane shed or housing. Any convenient instrumentalities may be adopted for raising and lowering the landing-stages, as, for instance, I may employ cables or connections H and I traveling over guiding pulleys and con trolled by the windlasses J and K respectivelv. w

When the landing-stages are lowered to operative position, it is highly desirable to.

cushion their movements, owing to the heavy weight that necessarily is involved. This may be accomplished in a variety of ways, and I have shown one form of mechanism as an illustration, comprising a lever member L which is pivotally mounted upon a stationary bracket M. The lever extends through an opening N in the side wall of the ship, and its outer end is provided with a suitable abutment L which lies in the path of the inner section D of the landing-stage. The inner end L of the lever is pivotally connected to a piston rod 0 mounted on a piston P which travels in the cylinder Q. The cylinder Q may be supplied with suitable ports and fluid-controlling devices to serve as a dash-pot for regulating movement of the pivoted lever L and thus serving to retard and cushion the landing-stage as the latter reaches the limit of its downward or opening movement.

It is to be understood that the invention is not necessarily confined in its broad use to hydro air planes, nor to the precise arrangement herein described, and I intend to cover by this application any ship mechanism which includes a movable landing-stage which isconstructed and positionable to accommodate an air plane in ascending or descending, as well as one which is made of a plurality of sections so that it can be utilized, when out of operation, as a protective housing for the ship supporting platform that receives the plane.

I claim 1. The combination with a ship having a supporting platform, of an air plane landing-stage which is-adjustably carried by the ship and when out of operating position, forms part of a housing above said platform. 2. The combination with a ship having a supporting platform, of an air plane landing-stage adj ustably arranged at each end of the platform, the landing-stages cooperating when out of operating fposition, to afford a housing above said plat orm.

3. The combination with a ship having a supporting platform, of an air plane landing stage adjustably arranged at each end ofthe platform and which when in operating position is of gradual inclination and of sufficient length to permit an air plane to ascend or descend it in approaching or leaving the supporting platform, the landingstages cooperating when out of operating position, to afford a housing above said platform.

4. The combination with a ship having a supporting platform, of an air plane landing-stage which is of gradual inclination,

when in operating position and comprises a plurality of sections foldable in one direction and held against relative movement in" the opposite direction.

5. The combination with a ship having a supporting platform, of an air plane landing-stage comprising a primary section hinged to the ship and forming a side Wall of a housing for the platform when out of operating position, and a secondary section hinged to the first mentioned section and forming a top wall of said housing when out of operating position, said sections having relative movement untll they are in ahnement, and retaming means preventing their relative movement in the opposite direction,

6. The combination with a ship having a supporting platform, of an air plane landing-stage at each end of said platform and comprising a primary section hinged to the ship and a secondary section hinged to the primary section, the primary sections when out of operating position forming side Walls of a housing for the platform and the secondary sections when out of operative position extending toward each other and forming the top wall of the housing.

7. The combination with a ship having a supporting platform, of an air plane landing-stage adjustably arranged on the ship and comprising a plurality of relatively movable sections which when in operating position form a way to permit ascent or descent of air planes to andfrom the platform.

8. The combination with a ship having a supporting platform, of an air plane landing-stage adjustably carried on the ship and comprising a plurality of relatively movable sections, which when in operating position form a Way of gradual inclination and sufficient length to permit ascent or descent of air planes to and from the platform.

9. The combination with a ship having a supporting platform, of an air plane landing-stage comprising a plurality of movable sections which when out of operatin position forfn part of a housing for sai platform.

10. The combination with a ship having a supporting platform, of a pair of oppositely arranged air plane landing-stages each comprising a plurality of movable sections which cooperate when out of operating position, to form a complete housing for said platform.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto signed my name.

MAXIMILIAN CHARLES SCHWEINERT. 

